Shale-distilling apparatus



July 21, 1925. 1,546,659

E. W. HARTMAN SHALE DI STILLING APPARATUS QFiled Sept. 6, 1921 3Sheets-Sheet 2 Mus/v TOR EMANUEL WHA/PTMAN I 5 July 21, 1925. 1,546,659

E. W. HARTMAN SHALIE DISTILLING APPARATUS Filed Sept. 5, 1921 s Sheets'Sheet 3 ATM/mar Patented July 21, 1925.

UNITED STATES EMANUEL W. HARTMAN, OF MIAMI, FLORIDA.

snann-msrmmne ArrARA'rUs.

Application filed September To all whom it may concern:

lle it known that l, EMANUEL W. HART- MAN. a citizen of the UnitedStates, residing at Miami, in the county of Dade and State of Florida,have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Shale-DistillingApparatus, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to an improvement in shale handling apparatus andmore par ticularly to an apparatus having a retort in which the shale isdistilled.

()no object of this invention is to provide in such apparatus a retorthaving a cylindrical chamber provided with a series of shelves or decksover which the shale is moved by means of a SOI'lCSO'f rotatingconveyors and in which retort the individual shelves are heated directlyso that the temperature under which the shale on each shelf is treatedcan be controlled.

Another object of this invention is to provide in the retort of thisapparatus a rotatable shaft which is normally supported onbearingsbeneath its foot but which may be raised under the action of theshale during the operation of the apparatus without disturbing itsdriving connection.

A further object of this invention is to provide in .the retort acorrugated base plate so that any distortion of the plate due to theextreme heat to which it is subjected during the distillation operationwill be taken up by such corrugations without interfering in any waywith the operation of the vertical driving shaft.

A still further object of this invention consists in providing in eachof the shelves of the retort a plurality of heating elements preferablyelectrically controlled.

Other objects will appear from the following description of theinvention taken in connection with the drawings which form a partthereof and in which Fig. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view of theretort forming a part of the apparatus of this invention;

Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the retort showing the drivingconnections;

Fig. 3 is a plan view of the base plate of the retort;

Fig. 4 is a cross section of such'plate, taken on the line 5-5 of Fig.3;

Fig. 5 is a plan view of one of the shelves 6, 1921. Serial No. 498,788.7

or decks intended to be used with the retort;

Fig. 6 is a cross section of the on the line 7-7 of Fig. 5;

Fig. 7 is a plan view of one of the conveyors by which the shale ismoved over the shelves;

Fig. 8 is a cross section taken on the line 99 of Fig. 7;

Fig. 9 is a cross section taken on the line 10-1O of Fig. 1 and showingthe bearings on which the driving shaft is supported;

Fig. 10 is a side view of one of the traps intended to be used with theretort with one side plate removed; and

Fig. ll is a diagrammatic View showing the course of travel followed bythe shale through the retort.

Referring to the drawings the reference deck taken numeral is used toindicate the retort.

The retort 20 is formed by the assemblage of the base plate 22, thedecks 23 and the.

cover 24. These elements are all circular and are encased by the brickwalls which are raised on the foundation 25 after these parts areassembled in order to prevent as much as possible any wasteof heat.Mounted on suitable supports in the base of the retort is a verticalsquared shaft 26- which carries a series of conveyors 27, one conveyorbeing provided for each deck. On the cover 24 of the conveyor is mounteda trap'28 through which shale issupplied to the retort while a secondtrap 29 is mounted below the retort and connected therewith by means ofa chute 30 to receive and dis charge the waste shale from the retort. Acentral opening 31 is provided around the shaft 26 in the cover 2 1.Mounted on the cover with its edges enclosing the opening 31 is a dome32 from one side of which leads a pipe line 33.

The base plate 22 shown in detailin Figs. 8 and 4 is provided with aseries of concentric corrugations 34. During the dis tillation operationthis plate is subjected to very extreme heat and it has been found thatif the plate is flat its tendency to expand under the-extreme heat willcause it to interfere with the operation of the drive shaft 26. For thatreason the plate is made corrugated so that any change in the dimensionsof the plate will be taken up by the corrugations. Through the plate 22is formed an opening 35 leading to the chute 30 referred to above.Around the periphery of the plate 22 are provided pairs of. projectingfingers 36 for the purpose to be described later.

In the present embodiment of this invention the decks 23, eight innumber, are" annular flanges 41 and 42, both of which are provided witha series of fingers 43 which correspond in every respect totheprojecting fingers 36 of the bottom plate.

Embedded in the plate 37 are a series of heating elements 44, here shownas electrically controlled. Certain only of the wires from the electricelements are shown in 1 projecting through the brick wall of the retort.It is understood, however, that all the wires from all the elements maybe brought through the wall so that the heating elements may all beeasily controlled.

In each of the decks 23 is provided an opening 45 by which the shalecarried on one deck isled to the deck below. Inasmuch as these decks aremade identical it is obvious that the various openings 45 therethroughmust be so located with respect to the decks above and below that theyare out of alignment with the openings in, such decks.

The conveyor plates 27 mounted on the shaft 26 are shown in detailinFigs. 7 and 8. These plates are provided with an annular series ofbottomless pockets 46. It willbe observed that the inner dimensions ofthese pockets are slightly less than the dimensions of the openings 45and 35. The conveyor plate 27, with its pockets 46, is rotated from theshaft 26 by means of a collar 47 having a squared inner surface andconnected to the inner ring 48 by means of the straps 49. The conveyors27 are nine in number, one being provided for each deck and one .for thebase plate 22. The collars 47 of these conveyors rest one upon the otherand are made of the exact size so that the conveyors rotate a certaindistance above the-base plate 22 or shelf 23, ,with the plates 50forming the pockets 46 located a trifle above the upper surface of thedecks 23.

The driving shaft 26 has at its lower end a tongue 51 which rests in aslot 52 provided at the upper end' of a short shaft 53. In the operationof the apparatus there is a tendency to raise thedrive shaft 26 as thesupply of shale in the retort increases so that eventually all theweight of the shaft is removed from the bearings 58 and is carried bythe shale on the various decks. In order to permit this raising of theshaft without any disturbance of the bearings the tongue and slotconnection indicated at 51 and 52 is provided. The shaft 53 is squaredat its lower end 54 to seat within the pocket 55 provided in the plate56. The plate 56 rests upon an anti-friction surface which comprises theroller bearings 58 between circular plates 57. The roller bearings 58 asshown particularly in Fig. 9 comprisethe inner ring 59 and the outerring 60 connected by a series of bolts 61 on which rotate freely theindividual disks 62 which support the entire weight of the shaft. Theportion of this shaft below the walls 25 of the retort is enclosedwithin a cylindrical casing 63 which is made up of two parts, the lowerpart .64 in which the bearings rest being providedwith any suitablemeans 65 -for supplying lubricant to the bearings.

Resting upon the uppermost conveyor 27 is a flanged collar 66 which inturn supports the flanged sleeve 67 which extends through the dome 32above referred to. In order to prevent the escape of any of the productsof distillation between the sleeve '67 and the dome 32 a suitablepacking ring 68 is provided. On the upper end of the shaft 26 is mountedthe pulley 69 by which the shaft is rotated.

The feed trap 28 comprises a casing 70 having a cylindrical chamberthrough which extends the shaft 71. On the shaft 71 is mounted a seriesof arms 72 which receive the material fed into the chamber thru thehopper 73 and carry it to the opening 74 through which it is dischargedinto the retort. The discharge trap 29 is made similar in every respectto the feed trap 28 and will not therefore be shown nor described indetail. Below the trap 29 is provided a chute 75 into which falls thewaste shale discharged from the trap 29. Mounted on the shaft 71 of thefeed trap 28 is a pulley 76 by which the shaft 71 is driven. Connectedto the shaft 71 beyond the pulley 76 by means f a union 77 is a shaft 78suitably suppor d in a bracket 79 carried on the foundation of theretort. At the outer end of the shaft 78 beyond the bracket 79 isprovided a pulley 80 which islocated directly above the pulley 81mounted on the shaft 82 of the discharge trap 29. A supplementarysupport for the shaft 82 in the form of a bracket 83 is provided.

Referring particularly to Fig. 5 of the drawing and to the diagrammaticshowing Fig. 11, it willbe observed that the various openings 45 in thedecks 23 are mounted out of alignment with each other. For conveniencein description the several decks will be directly above the dischargeopening in the base plate 22. The shale is carried around over the deckby the first or top conveyor to the opening a5 through which it drops tothe second deck 23 It is then picked up by the second conveyor andcarried around the deck 23 to the opening indicated in dotted lines onFig. 6 through which it drops to the third deck 23. The further progressof the shale through the machine over the decks 23D-lElE-GH and throughthe openings 45 to 4:5 to the base plate 22 can-be easily traced in thediagram shown in Fig. ll. WV hen reaching the base plate 22 the shale iscarried by the lowest conveyor 27 to the opening 35 and thence throughthe chute 30* to. the discharge trap 29 and out through the chute 7 5.

As pointed out above the openings 45 and 35 are slightly largerthan thepockets to of the conveyors 27 so that as each pocket passes over thedeck opening the entire charge falls through the opening into the pocketof the conveyor below, this second pocket being empty because the chargetherein had just been dropped through the,,opening l5 over'which it hadjust passed.

If it is desired for any reason to increase the number of decks this canbe done without in any way interfering with the operation of themachine, it being understood, however, that if the number of decks isincreased the arrangement shown in Fig. 5 will beslightly changed so asto increase the number of openings provided in a single circle or elsethe arrangement shown in Fig. 5 will be retained and the machinearranged so that the discharge opening 35 is at the proper relation totheropening in the lower deck.

The flanges d0 on each deck overlap slightly the inner wall of thepockets 46 to prevent the shale from falling through the openings 39. Aflanged ring 36 is mounted at the bottom of the squared portion of thedrive shaft and extends into the inner corrugation 34 on the plate 22 toprevent any shale from working down around the shafts 26 and 53 into thebearings 58.

The base plate 22 has a central opening 87 made larger than the shafts2b and 53 which extend through it. Around this opening the plate 22 isthicker than elsewhere and. rests in'a pocket 88 of the foundation 25.Below the plate 22 is provided an "annular chamber 89 which may beheated in any suitable Way if desired, such as for'example by means ofgas burners as shown in my copending application, Serial No. 478,140filed June 16, 1921.

In order to prevent the escape of the products of distillation betweenthe cover 24, decks 23 and base plate 22 the peripheries of thesemembers are interlocked. On the upper face of the plate 22 and the upperfaces of the flanges 41 of the decks 23 are provided annular ridges 90which seat in annular grooves 91 in the flanges 42 of the decks above.The cover 24 is similar in con struction to the decks '23, beingprovided with a depending flange 92 at the top and bottom of which areannular flanges 93 and 94. In the flange 9a is provided an annulargroove 95 to receive the ridge 90 on the upper deck. The flange 93 isshorter than the flange 9t and merely contacts with the wall withoutbeing embedded therein. On the flange 9d are pairs of projecting fingers96 which correspond to the fingers 36 and 4:3 referred to above. Theplate 22, decks 23 and cover 24 are clamped together by means of bolts97 engaging the projecting fingers of the adjacent members. By reason ofthe annular ridges and grooves and the clamping bolts, the jointsbetween the peripheries of the plate, decks and cover-are 'thus'tightlysealed.

The moving parts of the retort are actuated by any prime mover whichthrough suitable gearing drives the chains 98 and 99. The chain 98passes around the pulley 69 and rotates the drive shaft while the chain99 passes around the pulley 76 and drives the traps 28 and 29 by theconnecting means shown in Figs. 1 and 2.

The vertical shaft 26 has a central core 100 in which is placed athermometerlOl which indicates on the dial 102 the temperature of theretort. llf this rises above a certain predetermined amount the electricbell 103 is energized by any suitable temperaturecontrolled means, athermocouple for example to give warning.

lit will be noted that by the use of the arms 48 in the conveyors 27 anopen passage 104 is provided at the center of the retort. Through thispassage the products of distillation are guided into the dome 32 andthence to'the pipe line'33 which is made up of a plurality of pipesectionssecured together and leads into a cooling chamber (not shown).fan 118 is connected to the pipe line 33 to'create suction and increasethe speed oftravel of the products of distillation.

ile certain s ecificembodiments have been shown and 'escribed applicantis not to be limited thereby since it is obvious that other embodimentsmaybe made without deinvention as set forth in the following claims.

Having thus described my invention that which I claim as new and forwhich I desire the protection of Letters Patent of the United States isthe following:

1. A retort for a shale distilling apparatus comprising a plurality ofvertically spaced annular shelves over which the shale, being distilledtravels during the operation of the apparatus, a plurality of conveyorsfor moving the shale, a central vertical shaft by which said conveyorsare actuated, the shaft extending through the central openings in saidannular shelves so that the shaft and shelves define an annular spaceinto which the products of distillation pass and a dome at the top ofsaid retort over saidannular space in which said products collect. V

2. The combination with a retort of the type set forth in claim 1 of apipe line leading from said dome for carrying off said products ofdistillation and a blower adapted to force air into said pipe line andthus create suction to further the collecting of said products.

3. In the retort of a shale distilling apparatus, a plurality of shelvesfor the shale being distilled, conveyors for moving the shale over saidshelves, positively driven vertically movable means for actuating saidconveyors, a support including anti-friction means for said actuatingmeans, and a tongue and slot connection below said shelves and abovesaid anti-friction means to permit separation between said shelves andsaid conveyors without disturbing the connection between the actuatingmeans and its support.

4. In the retort of a shale distilling apparatus, a plurality of shelvesfor the shalebeing distilled, a plurality of conveyors for moving theshale over said shelves a positively driven vertically movable shaft foractuating said conveyors, a support for said shaft, and a tongue andslot connection below said shelves and between said shaft and saidsupport. I

5. In the retort of a shale distilling apparatus, a plurality of shelvesfor the shale being distilled, a plurality of conveyors for moving theshale over said shelves, a positively driven vertical shaft terminatingbelow said shelves for actuating said conveyors, a second shaft belowsaid first shaft and connected thereto by tongue and slot mechanism andanti-friction bearings on which said second shaft rests.

6. In the retort of a shale distilling apparatus, conveyors for movingthe shale being distilled, a positively driven vertical shaftterminating below said shelves for actuating said conveyors, a secondshaft coaxial with and below said first shaft, and a tongue and slotconnection between said shafts to permit a certain axial separation ofsaid shafts.

7. In a shale distilling apparatus, a retort having a cylindricaldistilling chamber, a plurality of shelves around the walls of sa dchamber, a corrugated base plate 1n said chamber having a central holetherethrough, conveyors passing over said shelves and base plate formoving the shale thereon and a vertical shaft'for actuating saidconveyors at the center of said chamber and passing through the hole insaid base plate.

In testimony whereof I ailix my signature.

EMANUEL W. HARTMAN.

